~ A blog dedicated to honoring and saving the Grand Staircase at Eastern Oregon University in La Grande, Oregon.

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Month: March 2017

The Grand Staircase was open for public use for some 75 years. We can only imagine the vast number of students, faculty members, townspeople, university employees, children on their way to J.H. Ackerman Elementary School, athletes, dignitaries and other visitors who climbed the steps during that time.

Did you know that when John V. Bennes designed the staircase he was thinking about each and every one of them? The risers are five inches in height and the treads are from 15 to 20 inches deep. This low, broad tread provides an easy ascent and a gradual climb.

As one of the children who climbed the steps on their way to Ackerman and later took them two at a time so I wasn’t late to class at EOU, I can only say thank you!

Photo courtesy EOU Pierce Library

The Grand Staircase at Eastern Oregon University was designed by Oregon architect John Bennes and completed in 1929. Sadly, it has deteriorated over the decades and was closed to public use in 2004.

The staircase is currently included on Restore Oregon’s Most Endangered Places List. In November of 2015 it was determined that the staircase was too far deteriorated for restoration to be a viable option, however efforts are underway to fund reconstruction.

We believe that the Grand Staircase has great potential as a cultural heritage tourism attraction and, as a result, could help boost the economy of La Grande and eastern Oregon. Even now, deteriorating and no longer opened to the public, it is an architectural treasure worth seeing. Reconstructed it could offer even more.

We started this blog and the accompanying Facebook page to raise awareness of the Grand Staircase and its architectural significance, post photographs and information of historical interest about the staircase, provide updates on the efforts to save our beloved “college steps” and share the stories and memories of those who love the staircase as much as we do.

To see a pictorial history of the staircase please visit our About page.

If you have any questions or have Grand Staircase memories, stories, or photos you would like to share please contact us at savethegrandstaircase@gmail.com.

One of the best definitions we’ve found for the word “staircase” is from a fictional account of the history of stairs where it is loosely defined as a method of going to “a tall place…” – perhaps not straight out of Webster’s, but poetic nonetheless.

As you can see from the Grand Staircase architectural drawing below (courtesy ofHennebery Eddy Architects), from street level (at the intersection of 9th and “L”) the staircase at EOU climbs 37 feet 2 ½ inches before reaching the View Terrace and Inlow Hall.

Or, perhaps we should say Tall Inlow Hall.

The Grand Staircase at Eastern Oregon University was designed by Oregon architect John Bennes and completed in 1929. Sadly, it has deteriorated over the decades and was closed to public use in 2004.

The staircase is currently included on Restore Oregon’s Most Endangered Places List. In November of 2015 it was determined that the staircase was too far deteriorated for restoration to be a viable option, however efforts are underway to fund reconstruction.

We believe that the Grand Staircase has great potential as a cultural heritage tourism attraction and, as a result, could help boost the economy of La Grande and eastern Oregon. Even now, deteriorating and no longer opened to the public, it is an architectural treasure worth seeing. Reconstructed it could offer even more.

We started this blog and the accompanying Facebook page to raise awareness of the Grand Staircase and its architectural significance, post photographs and information of historical interest about the staircase, provide updates on the efforts to save our beloved “college steps” and share the stories and memories of those who love the staircase as much as we do.

To see a pictorial history of the staircase please visit our About page.

If you have any questions or have Grand Staircase memories, stories, or photos you would like to share please contact us at savethegrandstaircase@gmail.com.

In several of our previous posts we’ve mentioned the balustrades and balusters of the Grand Staircase. After all, it’s hard not to fall in love with the gentle, repetitive curves and rosy hue of the balusters and how many of us have sat on, leaned on or (don’t try this at home) walked along the staircase railings (AKA the baluster caps)?

Photo – courtesy EOU Pierce Library

But balusters and baluster caps alone do not a Grand Staircase make. Among the other components needed are piers and pier caps.

You’ll find the piers at landings, changes in direction and at periodic intervals on long stair runs. They serve as terminations and bookends for the balustrade sections.

Two examples of piers – photos courtesy of Hennebery Eddy

Pier caps sit on top of the piers (tied into balustrade caps with steel anchors and pins). They add character and a finishing touch, but also serve a function as well. They are designed to shed water and this protects the integrity of the piers.

The piers are predominately in fair condition. This can be attributed to several factors one of which is likely the protection they have received from the pier caps.

Today we nominate the Grand Staircase pier caps for “best architectural component in a supporting role”.

There are six different style of pier caps (shown below) – photos courtesy of Hennebery Eddy…

We believe that the Grand Staircase has great potential as a cultural heritage tourism attraction and, as a result, could help boost the economy of La Grande and eastern Oregon. Even now, deteriorating and no longer opened to the public, it is an architectural treasure worth seeing. Reconstructed it could offer even more.

We started this blog and the accompanying Facebook page to raise awareness of the Grand Staircase and its architectural significance, post photographs and information of historical interest about the staircase, provide updates on the efforts to save our beloved “college steps” and share the stories and memories of those who love the staircase as much as we do.

To see a pictorial history of the staircase please visit our About page.

If you have any questions or have Grand Staircase memories, stories, or photos you would like to share please contact us at savethegrandstaircase@gmail.com.